Now Available from L.M.I.
My Special Fret Tang Tools
© Frank Ford, 2/4/00; Photos by FF, 2000
Here are two little tools that have bailed me out of some nasty fretting
difficulties:
Click on either tool to see a close-up
of the jaws.
The Fret Tang Expander makes little crinkles in the fret tang. The idea is to position the grooved anvil jaw of the plier right over one of the little barbs on the fret tang. Then, by varying the pressure, it's easy to poke the tang sideways, thereby increasing the effective width of the tang in that area to whatever extent necessary:
Click this photo for a better view.
I make these little tools by hand, using my old Rockwell 1" x 42" belt sander:
Click to see the process in detail.
The companion Fret Tang Compressor is simply
a cut down needle nose plier. I've chosen a model that has the jaws very close to
the pivot point, so it develops good leverage. One quick squeeze flattens the little
barbs a little, or completely, as needed. I find this tool really helpful for tapping
frets in the end of a cantilevered fingerboard on an archtop guitar or mandolin.
Now, these tools aren't for everyday use. They are no substitute for having the right
size fret wire for the job at hand. BUT, every so often, I run into a severely damaged
fingerboard, one with widened fret slots, or one where only a few slots are uneven.
That's where these tools really shine. They can really help out in an emergency!
Now available from L. M. I. (Luthiers Mercantile)
Fret Tang Expander | # FFT-1 | $ 25.00 |
Fret Tang Compressor | # FFT-2 | $ 20.00 |
L. M. I.
P.O. Box 774
Healdsburg, CA 95448
800-477-4437
Overseas: 707-433-1823
www.lmii.com
Wherever I've presented my refretting demonstration,
someone always asks, "Where can I get those little tools." My answer
has been to encourage luthiers to make their own, using my instructional
article. Now, the folks at L. M. I. have me actually
making the tools for sale through the L. M. I. catalog. Whether you buy 'em
or make 'em, I think you'll find they are worth the money or effort the very
first time you salvage a fret job from "going south" on you!
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